


you're an ocean (and i happen to love the sea).

by we_are_just_bad_code



Category: Motherland: Fort Salem (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pirate, F/F, and rae looks hot in pirate clothes, pirate!raelle, scylla gets a lil murder as a treat, siren!scylla, slow burn?, thats it thats this fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:08:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24513625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/we_are_just_bad_code/pseuds/we_are_just_bad_code
Summary: A gasp left her lips.Sirens.Raelle had heard the stories of the sea creatures that lured men to their deaths. Every pirate had. They were whispered about in dark alleys as much as they were joked about in taverns. And apparently, they were very real.Or the one where Scylla is very bad at her job and Raelle can't help but think monsters are beautiful: Raylla pirate/siren AU.
Relationships: Raelle Collar/Scylla Ramshorn
Comments: 29
Kudos: 204





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> disclaimer: i know nothing about ships

Climbing out of her cabin onto the deck of the ship, Raelle took a deep breath, inhaling the salty scent of the sea. Somewhere off in the distance, seagulls cried as they soared up high above the water. The last of the day’s light faded on the horizon and Raelle stopped at the gunwale to watch it give way to a dark blue in the sky.

A lazy smile of contentment crept to her lips. Their voyage would soon be over. Although Raelle cherished sailing more than anything, Tally’s promise of arrival by tomorrow morning filled her with an almost childish sort of excitement.

After years of piecing together torn out maps and scrolls with what little information she found in her mother’s journals, Raelle was more than ready to unearth the secrets of the island that lied ahead. She ran her fingertips on the outlines of the turquoise stone that hanged by a golden chain from her neck and held it tightly.

“We’re almost there huh?” Abigail joined her, propping herself up on a nearby canon with ease. She was wearing her captain’s hat, which was starting to look worn out at the edges, and a navy coat to protect her from the sea breeze.

“Yeah, I can hardly believe it,” Raelle admitted, brushing away a strand of lose hair that was blown in front of her eyes. She had allowed her blond hair to grow longer than she normally would, past her shoulders. Its usual braids were still kept in their rightful place, though, adorned by silver beads and seashells. “Feels like only yesterday we were scrubbing decks together,” she chuckled.

“We rose up, Collar,” Abigail’s voice was heavy with pride and her eyes shone as she turned around to look at their ship. It was Abigail’s greatest joy. From its strong wooden masts dropped scarlet sails that contrasted beautifully with the golden paint on the sides of the galleon.

“Yeah, she’s a beauty,” Raelle smiled, eyebrows shooting up as she noticed Tally coming their way, her eyes shining with a buzz that matched the one in the air.

“Dinner’s ready!” The redhead looked almost ridiculous with a sword hanging by her hip and a grin so wide as the one she wore when she rushed to embrace her sisters.

“Calm down, Tal,” Abigail chuckled, patting her softly on the shoulder.

“I’m just so excited! We’ve been after this for years,” Tally took a deep breath, pursing her lips only to have them go back to their previous smile.

“I know, Tal,” Raelle whispered, letting go of the hold she had on Tally’s waist. Her gaze shifted from Tally’s eyes to Abigail’s as she licked her lips in preparation to speak. “I wanted to say-”

“Are you gonna be sappy right now, Collar?” Abigail interrupted, tilting her head in teasing.

“Me?!” Raelle scoffed, laughing before turning serious again, fidgeting with the hem of her coat. “I just wanted to say thank you,” she started, eyes momentarily flicking downward. “For everything, for getting me here. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“We know how important this is for you, Rae,” Tally smiled warmly and pulled her friend into another tight hug.

“Speak for yourself, I’m only here for the treasure,” Abigail scoffed jokingly before wrapping her arms around Raelle and Tally. “We’d go with you to the end of the world, shitbird,” the captain whispered.

***

Raelle awoke with a gasp, her hammock moving hastily from side to side, threatening to throw her to the floor. She rubbed her eyes before opening them groggily, blinking as they adjusted to the light that came from a single lit candle on her right.

She grunted sleepily as she pushed herself off the hammock. She could hear a harsh crashing of water against wood as she came to her feet and felt the ship move beneath her. _Something was wrong._

She quickly put on her clothes, hurried by yelled orders that now sounded from deck, muffled by waves and thunders. Strapping her sword’s holster to her waist and grabbing her coat, she stepped out of her cabin and soon was climbing out to the deck along with fellow members of her crew.

Air was knocked out of her lungs once she reached it by winds powerful enough to make her lose her balance. The sky was pouring, angry in its wallows. By now, her heart was hammering in her chest, compelling her to keep moving. Raelle forced herself to take a deep breath as she grabbed onto the thick ropes that run along the gunwale for support.

“We’ve been caught by a storm!” Abigail was suddenly by her side, stance wide, yelling over the chaos that filled the air.

“Yeah, no shit,” Raelle replied, her voice hoarse and barely audible. A storm was an understatement. The cold winds that blew against them sent shivers down their spines and the sky above them was as dark as the sea below.

Lighting struck the clouds allowing Raelle to see more clearly for a brief moment and she looked around frantically, searching for something, anything that would make all of this make sense. _They were_ _so close_.

Raelle’s jaw clenched with something that felt too much like anger as she tried to swallow past the lump in her throat. They had faced storms before, but somehow this one felt different. More powerful, more destructive. The last remains of sleepiness left her as dread settled deep in her chest, hidden by her bravery.

“Where’s Tally?” Raelle managed to scream, fighting the urge to squeeze her eyes shut as the sting from saltiness of the water constantly thrown at them by high waves made them feel like they were on fire.

Raelle could see Abigail’s lips moving in response, but barely heard a thing as she scanned the deck for the familiar head of red hair.

“Come on, we gotta find her,” Abigail yelled in Raelle’s ear, linking their arms together for mutual support and started walking in the direction of the bow.

Somewhere off in the distance, above the wet splashes of water, the softest of voices began to echo in the air, with a song as sweet as a fresh honey. Raelle’s feet came to a stop, halting Abigail’s stride as she listened closely. The song was strangely alluring, seductive even. Raelle’s eyes got lost in the sea as her heart came to the calmest of paces despite the chaos surrounding her.

“Raelle!” She could barely acknowledge Abigail’s screams as the captain tried to move them forward. Raelle’s mind was so oddly quiet, clouded by a warm feeling that resembled peace, consumed by the need to join the one singing in the sea.

“Rae, snap out of it!” Abigail grabbed her face roughly, covering her ears with her hands. As the song faded and Raelle looked into Abigail’s steady eyes she found she could once more feel the rain drops falling heavily on her face.

A gasp left her lips. _Sirens_.

Raelle had heard the stories of the sea creatures that lured men to their deaths. Every pirate had. They were whispered about in dark alleys as much as they were joked about in taverns. And apparently, they were very real.

Seeming to notice Raelle had come back to herself, Abigail lowered her hands just as a wave broke against them, throwing them to the floor. The ship lurched to the right as Raelle fought to find anything she could grab onto to keep herself from sliding along the deck. She was coming straight for the main mast, quickly. She could feel the pain of her body hitting it before it even happened, muscles tensing as if trying to protect themselves.

As soon as her flesh hit wood with a dull thud, Raelle rushed to wrap herself along the mast, grunting at the way her ribcage throbbed, making it hard to breathe. In the darkness of the night and with her eyelashes peppered with raindrops, it was harder to see than ever. Raelle extended her right arm blindly to where she thought Abigail could be coming from and in a second her fingers were grasping a fistful of wet fabric, the weight of Abigail’s body pulling her down.

As the ship sailed through the enraged ocean, Raelle held onto Abigail as fiercely as she could, her arm aching in protest. Eventually, another wave tilted the ship to a neutral stance and the two pirates were able to come to their feet. They were soaked through their clothes and the cold was starting to make its home in their bones. Luckily enough, Raelle finally spotted the tall woman they were searching for, coming towards them with careful, although hurried, steps.

“We’re being pulled off-course,” Tally screamed as soon as she joined them, hugging them and briefly burying her face in the crook of Raelle’s neck. “We need to get the sails up!”

Abigail immediately set of to tell their men what needed to be done, the natural leader in her coming to the surface. All around them the siren song still resonated in the air, mellow and captivating. It was getting louder, closer. Raelle could swear the sea was glowing in a light blue and it took all of her willpower to not get dragged back into the trance she’d been in before.

Others, however, were not as strong.

No matter how loudly Abigail screamed at the sailors to pull themselves together, they wouldn’t listen and soon, one after another, were jumping overboard, meeting their end with delight.

Raelle rushed to pull back their men from the edge of the ship, yelling, tugging at their clothes, pulling back their limbs, but her efforts were fruitless. A hasty look over the gunwale showed her bright blue water getting rapidly tinted in crimson and in the midst of all those colors Raelle saw _it_. The siren.

Brushing away the rain from her eyes, she took a shaky breath, attempting to commit the scene to memory. But the moment was gone too quickly and all Raelle could remember were wet strands of dark hair, shiny fish scales and _beauty_.

She ran back up to the mast, pushing the image out of her mind, the weight of her wet clothes slowing her down. Joining Tally and Abigail, she pulled at the rope tied to sails. Its rough materials pressed into Raelle’s palms, craping them harshly as she grunted in resolution. The few of the men who had managed not be affected by the siren’s calling followed her example.

It was hard to maintain her posture as her body was hit with chilly winds and the deck took on more and more water. She pressed forward, hands burning and shoulders growing sore.

Looking up to see the sail move inch by inch, marking her success, Raelle grunted. A scream was begging to be let out of her chest as the work Raelle’s hands were focused on wasn’t enough to help her push past the emotions that were threatening to overcome her. Anger hit her with a strength greater than that of any wave, topped only by resentment. Resentment towards the seas, towards the sky, but mostly, towards herself.

***

Beneath the sea, Scylla reveled in the taste of blood on her tongue, in the frenzy in which the pirates jumped ship to meet her call. The waves around her tingled her senses, sharpening them.

It had been a while since someone had dared sail that way and Scylla was _hungry_. Hungry for the hunt, for the power, for the company. Having been abandoned by her kind to guard an island no one had set foot in for hundreds of years filled her with a kind of emptiness that drilled holes in her soul, a kind of emptiness a galleon lost at sea could quench, even if just for a little while.

Scylla no longer believed in the gods.

The old ones that ruled the seas in the past were nothing but children’s stories to her now. Nevertheless, she had hoped, she wouldn’t lie, she had prayed, even, for a night like this one; for a night where the skies matched the grief in her heart and _poured_ , the thunders the anger she had so shamelessly let run untamed for years.

And yet, she found her bottom lip caught between her sharp teeth, displeased. These were just pirates, looking for something they’d never find, like countless others before them. They weren’t soldiers, they didn’t sail under a nation’s flag, they weren’t the ones she wanted to set her rage loose upon. They were just men. Men who had killed her kind before, sure. But not those who had persecuted them, who had run harpoons through her parent’s fins.

Scylla swallowed, pushing past the lump on her throat. She’d work with what she had been given by the seas, even if it lighted up a bright fire in her chest to not see her one desire met.

She swam to the surface once more, felt the drops of sweet water on her face and released her song.

The few humans that remained aboard were cleverly trying to raise the sails, making it harder for the winds to set their fate. A small curious smile came to Scylla’s lips. One of them was resisting the call, she could feel it, could sense her song being shut out, the pirate unyielding.

She propelled herself closer. She knew of tales of those strong enough to resist a siren’s call, yet she had never found a man to be able to refuse the allures of her song so adamantly. It was infuriatingly marvelous and Scylla was not one to back down from a challenge.

***

Overlooking the siren’s song was getting harder and harder by the minute. No matter how loudly the thunders rang in Raelle’s ears, shaking her to her core, the voice of the creature was all she could hear.

As soon as the sail she had been working on was up she ran to another one, rushing to get her hands to focus on something again, afraid of what not having a physical distraction might lead her to do.

In her haste, Raelle failed to take into account the movements of the ship, how it was about to come crashing down the sea after rising in a high wave. She was immediately pushed forward by forces of invisible nature and for a moment she could swear she was flying, all four of her limbs dangled spread out before her, free.

The floor was soon getting closer to her, however. And when she hit it, despite her arms stretching out in defense, she hit it roughly. The impact sent shudders through her body, a small cry left her lips.

One would expect that everything in Raelle would be telling her to get up, to push past the pain, to go back to the fight against the sea. But none of that happened. Instead, Raelle rolled herself onto her back with a hiss and stared at the sky.

The throb in her ribcage from her earlier misadventure was making it hard to breathe and the deep gash that now appeared to be adorning her forehead sent thick blood down her face, granting her vision a redish blur.

The sky was dark and bare of stars.

Raelle closed her eyes.

 _She had been so close_.

So close to fulfilling her mother’s legacy; to maybe, just maybe, find something that would give her life a little bit more meaning.

She cursed herself for her earlier happiness, for having dared herself to _hope_ , even if it was just this once.

“Raelle!” Tally’s voice sounded from somewhere on her right, snapping her out of her thoughts. Her head instantly turned in its direction to see, in the midst of lose strands of hair, Abigail and Tally still pulling down rope, attempting to get the last one of the sails up.

Raelle took a deep breath and pushed herself of the floor. In another time, she would have kept lying on the deck, eyeing the clouded moon, awaiting her end. But she couldn’t do that now, not when Tally and Abigail were out there fighting, bloody hands, pained grimaces, aching muscles and all.

Wiping away the blood from her eyes, Raelle shakily walked up to the only rope that was left unmanned, which hanged by the gunwale. She pulled and pulled until she had no more air left in her lungs and was sure she’d pass out, her heart beating in her chest as heavy as a hammer.

Her breaths came out in short pants, her arms quivered, missing their usual strength. She was exhausted, truly spent. And so, when a wave hit the galleon and made her lose her balance once more, Raelle barely had time to process the fact that she was sliding over the edge of the ship before it was too late and she had nothing to grab onto.

The drop took longer than she expected and this time she didn’t feel like she was flying.

She fell and fell and fell, arms outstretched towards her ship, as despair kicked in and the sweet song of the siren resonated louder than ever.

She didn’t think of the blood that tainted the water or the death sentence that awaited her or the fact the only two people she cared about in the whole world were left screaming for her. No, her mind was blank, lost in process.

And just like that she was surrounded by water and the bodies of her fellow crew members. It was cold, colder than she ever remembered sea water to be, and the gash on her forehead stung with the saltiness of it.

Raelle tried to fight the pull and push of the waves, tried to stay afloat, her survival instincts kicking in with the last of her strength. But it wasn’t enough, and in that moment, she felt terribly small.

The water left a metallic taste on her tongue as it filled her mouth, then her throat and lungs. Her limbs fell slack around her as she sank, deeper and deeper, until everything was dark.

***

Scylla tilted her head in wonder as she got closer to the ship. She could now spot the silhouette of the man who dared resist her song, pulling at rope deliciously close to the gunwale.

As it turned out, he was no man at all, but a young woman, a mess of blond hair, slender shoulders and _power_.

A smirk came to Scylla’s lips.

 _Well, now that was interesting_.

She kept on singing her song, rage forgotten, her attention now totally focused on the one who got away.

But then the pirate was falling, drowning, the strength of the sea no match for her and Scylla swam to her, watched her as her small body descended deeper and deeper into the darkness.

She had soft features, even as her lungs were filling up with water. A scar on the left side of her chin. Ocean blue eyes.

Wrapping one arm around the girl’s figure, Scylla brought them both to the surface with ease.

The girl was dead weigh against her body, unconscious as she was as Scylla carried her swiftly to shore and coaxed life back into her.

With the first coughs of water leaving the pirate’s mouth, Scylla released a relieved sigh she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.

 _Gods, humans were weak_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed :)  
> haven't tried to write an AU in so long, so any feedback would be appreciated!
> 
> Come yell at me about Raylla anytime, I'm on tumblr at [@we-are-just-bad-code](https://we-are-just-bad-code.tumblr.com)


	2. Chapter 2

Raelle woke up with a gasp, throat burning as she coughed in a sudden desperate need for air.

She was alive.

It was shocking to realize that, at first, her last memories being of sinking in the endlessly deep sea, limbs kicking desperately against the currents.

But there she was, breathing and painfully alive.

Raelle could feel grains of sand tickling her fingers where they met the ground, could hear the breaking of waves against shore, followed by water calmly washing over her feet. Droplets of sweat were starting to linger on her eyebrows. It was warm, almost uncomfortably warm if it weren’t for the fact her clothes were still wet.

Coming to herself, Raelle grunted as she brushed the sand away from her eyes and dared to open them, only to immediately close them again, the brightness of the late morning too much for them to bear.

Behind closed eyelids, Raelle saw bright blue eyes staring at her in interest, studying her; felt soft lips on hers, breathing life back into her; sensed a soft hand tracing the scar on her face, careful as if she was so weak as to break under the touch.

Raelle shook her head. Those weren’t memories, they were dreams; images created by her oxygen deprived brain to fulfil an unspeakable desire to be cared for.

 _Get the fuck up, Collar_ , she told herself, pushing the thoughts of the mysterious woman to the back of her mind as she tried to find the strength to move.

Covering her face with her forearm, Raelle slowly opened her eyes once more, squinting at the brightness of the sun’s rays reflected on the sand. She sat herself up, cursing as pain rushed through her body, sharp and breathtaking.

Her surroundings came into focus; a small bay framed by rocky cliffs, blue water clashing against white sand at her feet, the horizon, where sea met sky, far away. Behind her stood a line of thick vegetation, trees and small plants boldly drawing out the limit between forest and beach.

Suddenly she was hit by the realization that _she had made it_. She was there, on the island that held the biggest of treasures; she had found it, she was going to fulfil the promise she made to her mother. Her mother, who had died by the hands of the british navy, who Raelle had seen swing from the noose. She took a deep breath, soothing the anger that threatened to overcome anxious relief.

Taking in the view, Raelle silently wished her mother could see her from whatever place she was. She gripped the stone that hung from her neck tightly and closed her eyes, hoping Willa was proud of her.

She needed only to get back to the ship, grab her mom’s journal and-

She clenched her jaw.

The ship. Abigail. Tally.

Her chest closed in on itself when she realized she didn’t know where they were or if they were even alive. Their screams as she fell down to the sea echoed in her ears as she frantically looked around, searching for something, someone in the midst of trees and the bulges of rocks, only to find nothing but seagulls flying high above her.

With her heart beating faster and faster, Raelle scrambled to her feet, stumbling as her legs threatened to give out beneath her, her body not yet quite as strong as her mind.

Somewhere off in the distance, unknowingly to her, a pair of curious eyes watched her, smirking.

Brushing away the sand that covered her clothes hastily, Raelle noticed her coat and sword were missing and her linen shirt was torn to shreds, the tears in it allowing soft pale skin to peak through, skin that was covered in blooming purple bruises. She touched the ones on her ribcage softly, hissing at the pain the simple touch brought her.

Raelle looked upon the forest behind her and the cliffs to her sides and tried to think of the direction the wind was blowing the previous night, of the course of the currents, attempting to guess where the ship might have been dragged to.

It didn’t make sense that she was there all on her own. That not even the barrels of beer that had fallen overboard or the bodies of those killed by the siren weren’t pulled to the same place she was. If she had been dragged to shore by the tides, like she was adamant on believing, why was she only one there?

Raelle had never been good at that kind of stuff though; no, that was Tally’s job as their navigator. Tally, whose smile was brighter than the sun; Tally, who might be at the bottom of the ocean, where no light could reach her.

Raelle tried to push those thoughts away, teeth nibbling on the inside of her cheek nervously. They wouldn’t help and she knew it, yet her worry was growing by the second, quickly coming to the edge of panic.

The knot on her throat got tighter as she looked around and found herself completely and utterly alone. If only she had paid more attention to Tally’s ramblings about current chart maps.

Spotting what looked like a passageway in the stone of the cliffs to her right, Raelle decided that was as good as a place to start looking as any. She walked up to it, the bright sun heightening the throb in the back of her eyes that reminded her of the gash above her eyebrow. Dried blood covered her face from her forehead to her cheek, tainting a few strands of blonde hair red.

Inside the rock, the air was cooler and Raelle breathed a little easier. Her pace was too slow for her liking; she wanted to go faster, to rush to know what awaited her on the other side of the cliff, wanted to run until all the anger and dread inside her were burned up, nothing but ashes to be swept away. Her body betrayed her however, every time she tried to get her bare feet to move faster on the sand.

***

Scylla reveled in the feeling of cold water against her skin as she watched the pirate stumble to her feet, hidden between the waves.

The first rays of daylight had broken over the horizon not long after she had dragged the pirate to shore, hanging on the limbo between life and death with a shallow pulse and a surprising strength.

Bringing her back to life had been exhilarating, Scylla would admit. Observing the rise and fall of her chest, brushing away the hair on her face, running her fingertips over the cut on her forehead, daring to taste her blood.

Scylla watched the human silently for hours, her head tilted in amusement as the darkness gave its way to light, her desire to feel the pirate getting the better of her every now and then.

She hadn’t gotten to touch someone in so long, not like that; those who came her way were only met with sharp teeth and death. Her hands had a will of their own as she traced the outlines of the girl’s face, the dip of her neck, the shape of her collar bone, fingertips sharply retreating as if embarrassed, only to return to soft skin again a mere second later.

By the time the pirate’s breathing became more even and her eyes started moving beneath her eyelids, the sun was soaring up high in the sky, reminding Scylla it was time to go, go back to the cold loneliness of the sea, where the only warm touch she got to feel was her own.

***

On the other side of the cliff, Raelle found only disappointment.

The kind that wrapped its hand around one’s heart and made it bleed.

The sand went as far as her eyes could see and on it were none of the things she kept hoping for.

Doubt crept up on her, causing her to wonder if she should turn back, tugging at her silently. But she kept on walking, prompted by the thought of her sisters, the feeling of sand beneath her feet growing familiar.

She would have been lost in time if it wasn’t for the rising of the sun, the minutes fading into hours as it soared up high in the sky until she saw them. The dead bodies of her comrades, laying on the sand, stiff and frigid with death.

She ran up to the closest one she spotted, throat burning and muscles aching, desperate to see who it was. The sigh that left her lips once she turned the body around and saw that it was neither Tally nor Abigail made guilt settle deep in her chest.

The bodies were marked by ugly wounds and bites made by sharp teeth, throats ripped out and faces deformed. Raelle closed their eyes, adjusted their clothes, held their hands and prayed for safe passage onto the next world, her heart tight and her jaw clenched.

Part of her couldn’t help but feel responsible for their deaths. This was her journey, her life’s work; if anyone deserved to die for it, it was her; if anyone deserved to end up cold and alone, it was her. Not them.

Despair started to take over her as she kept on walking and found nothing but the dead. The heat was starting to make her vision blurry, her dry mouth reminding her she’d have to find water if she was to keep herself from passing out from dehydration. But her mind was only able to focus on one goal, on keeping her feet moving one in front of the other, of pressing forward. _She had to find them. They were alive. She just had to find them._

Raelle’s hair was glued to her forehead with sweat, the effort of walking along the beach for hours catching up with her as her legs started to lose their balance. Somewhere in the back of her mind irked the strange sensation of being watched, of someone hiding, following her with their gaze, but every time she turned around there was no one there; only trees and rocks stood behind her, mocking what she labeled as paranoia.

With each crew member she found, blank eyes staring into nothing, skin smeared with blood, Raelle’s resolution weakened; her hope, the one thing that kept on fueling her, burned lower and lower; the thought that, just like every good thing in her life, her sisters were taken away from her, grew stronger, tying a knot in her throat.

By now, the thought of shiny scales and sharp teeth had become a good distraction and as she looked to the sea as she walked, she pictured the siren; the cause of the deaths of all these people, people she knew, people she had recruited, some of who she would even call her friends.

The siren who had almost made Raelle jump willingly to the sea.

(But she had fallen to the water, so why wasn’t she one of the bodies laid on the sand, life cut too shortly by the ruthless creature?)

It felt good to have someone to focus her rage on other than herself; it felt good to feel something other than fear and loneliness and pain.

And so as the hope of finding her sisters diminished, her anger grew wild and oaths to find the one responsible for all the death around her were silently sworn, muttered against the sea breeze.

The sun was starting to set by the time Raelle’s gaze ran over figures that weren’t laid on the sand, but standing, far enough away she had to squint to make sure her mind wasn’t playing tricks on her. There was a brief moment of hesitation, where her heart started racing and she took a deep breath, the air quiet with anticipation and her mind torn between choosing to hope and not daring to.

Her body took the choice away from her, however, and before she could notice it, she was running, feet stumbling, falling down, spiting a mouthful of sand, only to get up again and keep going. Everything around her melted away and she focused only on the four figures that she could see more and more clearly the faster she ran.

“Raelle!”

When they came together, Raelle didn’t try to hold back her tears.

She hugged her sisters fiercely, her fingers digging deep into their backs in an unrelenting grip, eyelids not daring to fall over her eyes as if afraid if they did, she’d realize that moment wasn’t real.

Their embrace brought strands of hair to Raelle’s lips, strong hands to her cheeks and the taste of salt to her tongue; but most of all it brought her relief, the kind that made her tighten her arms around their waist and not want to let go.

“We thought you were dead,” Tally sniffed once they pulled back, tears still running freely down her cheeks.

“Yeah, so did I,” Raelle chuckled. Her attempt at a joke was weak and she ran her hand over her face in order to brush away the last of her tears.

“You had us worried, Collar,” Abigail said and if Raelle hadn’t known her she would have missed the crease of her eyes, or the way her voice was an octave lower than usual.

Raelle ran her eyes over her friends, looking for cuts or bruises or any other sign that indicated they were hurt. Tally’s hair was messy and tangled, her clothes torn almost as badly as her own, but other than that she appeared to be fine, as did Abigail.

Only then did she look to the two figures behind them, who were gazing at her expectantly. Libba and Glory stepped forward once they felt they wouldn’t disturb the intimacy of the moment, the first nodding towards Raelle while the latter grinned at her.

“What happened?” Raelle started, the back of her hand coming to sweep at her nose, a gesture that revealed her fear of the answer. “Where’s the ship?”

Silence stretched out between them, Tally’s gaze dropping to the ground and Abigail’s look hardening.

“The ship sank.”

As soon as the words were out of Abigail’s mouth, Raelle’s heart panged.

 _No. No. No_.

She took a shaky breath, shaking her head.

This couldn’t be happening. Not right now, not after everything they’d been through.

“We had to jump overboard, it was taking on too much water,” Abigail continued after a short pause.

Raelle’s nails pressed themselves against her palms, her hands forming tight fists.

Her mother’s journals, the maps, the scripts, everything she had of her apart from the stone that hanged from her neck was gone, lost to the depths of the ocean.

She suddenly found she couldn’t breathe, the high she had previously felt from finding her sisters was put out as soon as it dared lit its flame.

They had been so close.

What did she even survive drowning and the siren and the heat for? What was the point now that everything was lost? The island was huge, she’d never find anything without those damned maps.

The familiar mixture of anger and sadness overtook her as she took a step back, her mind still trying to fit everything together.

“I’m sorry, Rae,” Tally’s hand was on her shoulder, her eyes were kind and compassionate, knowing what was going through her mind.

A scream bubbled in Raelle’s chest, begging to be let lose. She bit her lip. “And the crew? Did no one else make it?”

“We haven’t found anyone else alive,” Libba spared the others from having to answer, voice firm as she met Raelle’s gaze.

_Great._

They had died for nothing. At the hands of a creature moved only by bloodlust.

“I’m going to take a walk,” Raelle turned around as tears brimmed in her eyes, threatening to fall no matter how hard she pushed them back.

“No, you’re not,” Abigail’s tone was stiff in the way Raelle knew she shouldn’t argue with her. But she didn’t care, not right then. Her world, what she had worked for her whole life had just fallen apart as quickly as it took for them to say three sentences. Everything was too much.

“You can barely stand,” Tally observed, following her. Raelle knew there was no point in going anywhere, it wouldn’t solve anything; and they were right, she was weak, though she could barely feel it then, her legs were shaking, her lips were chapped and her throat burned with thirst. She swallowed, in an attempt to push past the dryness in her mouth, and brought her feet to a halt, tears flowing freely from her eyes.

“Come on,” Tally said once Raelle stopped moving and hooking one arm beneath her sister’s, gently lead her back to the others. “We found some barrels with food and water from the ship on the beach.”

***

Scylla stared at her reflection on a small mirror in the dim light that came from the fire. The air of the cave she used as shelter was cold and humid with the sea breeze. It had been a long while since she had turned back to her human form. She felt awkward standing on two legs, the feeling of her own bodyweight on her feet, feet that were too soft for the harsh rock underneath, felt wrong and out of place.

Despite her shaky steps and hesitant movements, Scylla’s lips were curved into a small smile, her head titled as she ran her fingers over the goosebumps on her thigh. She ignored the shiver that ran through her spine as she went through clothes she had taken from some of her kills.

Deep down, something told her she shouldn’t proceed with her plan, that it wasn’t what she was there to do; it could cost her everything. But Scylla hadn’t been able to stop picturing those blue eyes and soft cheeks all day; no amount of swimming made them fade into the back of her mind; no small distraction allowed her to have thoughts of something other than the pirate she’d pulled from the sea.

And so after watching the girl stumble her way through miles of sand, her whole self a mixture of exhaustion and determination, Scylla had decided she wanted to get closer; she wanted to hear her voice, see her eyes in the moonlight, watch her undo her braids before bed.

She didn’t know where this strong desire to be close to a human came from and if it had surfaced years ago, she was sure she’d have pushed it out of her head and drowned it deep in the ocean. Part of her still told her that was what she should do. Her will wasn’t strong enough for that, however; not when she had been alone for so long she had to talk to herself to be reminded of her own voice; not when she had never seen someone so tragically beautiful.

Scylla picked up a pair of trousers and a button up shirt that looked like it had seen better days, dirt smudged on its sleeves, and got dressed. If the feeling of standing on two feet had been odd, having linen cover her skin was odder. She couldn’t help the insecurity that crept up on her as she watched herself in the mirror.

Gone was the siren.

Long live the deceiver.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ....they will meet for real soon i promise
> 
> comments are always appreciated
> 
> i'm on tumblr at [@we-are-just-bad-code](https://we-are-just-bad-code.tumblr.com)


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